As announced last month all applicants will also now receive an increased payment rate to ensure all available EU funding is distributed.

The funding, which is being issued well in advance of the 30 September deadline set by the Commission, is targeted towards the hardest hit dairy farmers, and encourages the widespread uptake of milk recording and production profiling techniques, which provide dairy farmers with the information required to help make informed business decisions.

Mr Ewing said:

“The recent downward pressure on gate prices badly affected our dairy sector, which is why I took the decision to reopen the EU Adjustment Aid Scheme window to ensure that as many farmers as possible were able to fully benefit from all available EU support.

“As promised last month, if any funding remained unclaimed by the end of the application period, I would increase all the current payment rates to ensure our dairy farmers received the maximum level of support. I can now confirm that I have done just that, and increased payments under this scheme will land in farmer’s bank accounts in the coming days.”

Background

Under the scheme the highest payment rate, £5,000, will be made available to our farmers on Bute, Arran, Mull, and the Kintyre peninsula to protect the supply base for Campbeltown creamery. Farmers who were paid less than 20 ppl during 2016 will receive £4,250, farmers who were under 25 ppl will get £2,500 each, while those farmers who received 25 ppl or more will receive £1,500. Additionally farmers who met the criteria of less than 1 million litres of milk production in 2015, will also receive a supplementary payment of £452.72.